Sometimes it seems as if all you are doing is trying to cram all the grammar rules and vocabulary of a language into your skull, hoping your head doesn't explode in the process, as you already have a few other languages taking up space in there as well.

Even after you have learned as much as your head can hold, you will make mistakes, and that can make you scared to try again. In this issue, Kendal Knetemann offers some advice on getting and keeping the right mindset when you are learning a language.

But what about different writing systems? Those can make learning a language even trickier. Tarja Jolma takes us on a journey through history to find out how one system to help bridge that learning gap was created for Chinese, with Pinyin.

We also need to take some time and explore some of the other aspects of a language, since it is never all just "grammar and vocab". John C. Rigdon has us look at how languages sometime interact with each other, leaving behind shared words, and how in some cases, those similar words are actually not related at all. Confused? John will sort it out.

And finally, how does language affect us, on a more emotional and intellectual level? Sure we need it to communicate, but is there a deeper connection? Oliver Elzingre tells us how a language performance piece affected his way of thinking.

Enjoy another packed issue of Parrot Time!

Erik ZidoweckiERIK ZIDOWECKIEDITOR IN CHIEF

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Letter From the Editor - In This Issue

Writer:

Erik Zidowecki

Images:

Petey: Women with statue

All images are Copyright - CC BY-SA (Creative Commons Share Alike) by their respective owners, except for Petey, which is Public Domain (PD) or unless otherwise noted.